Some people have an intrinsic factor deficiency (or other digestive issues) that require supplementation with B12. Intrinsic factor is what binds to B12 in the stomach so it can be absorbed, and there are some situations where it's just not produced, or the absorption is poor for other reasons. I've heard that, if you have that, you can take the regular supplements or regular sublingual supplements, since they're such a huge amount that enough will eventually get absorbed. Others get injections every couple of weeks (I think...). Apparently it burns! :/

A huge amount of people I see get hydroxocobalamin (B12) injections. Usually the injections are given every 3 months as the body can store it for ages (I can't remember how long and am too lazy to go and check!). As fb said it is mostly due to lack of absorption....so using the tablets is generally not effective.

In the UK the only oral prep available of (government funded) prescription was only recommended for vegans because otherwise it's pretty much useless. I don't think I've seen the oral preps even being prescribed here in NZ.

The most common cause for B12 deficiency is poor absorption, certain stomach conditions, or inadequate nutritional intake (ie not eating enough quantity of food in general)... it's pretty common in older folks, due to appetite loss, long-term medication for ulcers, confusion (forget to eat), or other general health issues. Of all the folks on my rehab caseload over the past 5 years that receive(d) B12 supplements/ had the diagnosis of 'B12 deficiency', none were vegan. Two had undergone (bad) gastric bypass surgeries, and weren't absorbing enough nutrients 'cause they didn't have enough stomach left; the rest have been omnis with either poor absorption or inadequate food consumption.... Most individuals with B12 deficiency are not vegan.

My boss suffers from a B12 deficiency (along with a score of other vitamin deficiencies & health problems - I saw her "pill bag" and she takes about 16 medications daily!) She eats a classic meat-rich diet. I told her her absorbency would increase with a sublingual supplement, but she said her doctor told her straight pills would be fine as long as she took it with orange juice. Which is, you know, why her B12 levels are still basically nonexistent. Sigh...

I was having a conversation with someone and they were telling me about someone else who was receiving b12 shots and they were a meat eater.

Has anyone else ever heard of this?

Yes, meat eaters are more likely to have a B12 definciency....B12 is created by "good" bacteria in the colon, a person can easily run out of it when they created an enviroment in the colon that breads destructive bacteria ( as opposed to "beneficial" bacteria)....Only about 20% of meat can be digested and the rest moves into the intestines partially digested, inviting destructive bacteria in to do the clean up work, once the balance between good and bad bacteria is disturbed, the B12 vitamin production will become low as well....Meat isn't the only thing to cause this, but it certainly leads to congestion in the colon....So meat eaters are most likely to have this deficiency.....Eating fresh veggies for lunch and dinner would be the best way to keep balance in the digestive tract....Processsed foods are often too dense to be digested and lead to the same congestion....I don't know many vegetarians, but I know many meat eaters and have heard them mention getting a B12 shot at one point or another...

While B12 is produced by bacteria in the intestines, for humans it's made too far down the line to be absorbed. It sucks, because for a lot of other animals this is how they meet their requirement =/ Vitamin K, on the other hand is done this way. But I recently read that now they're not too sure how much the intestinal production of the vitamin even contributes, so it might be the same story for that one too.

Good point FB because if we made it ourselves there would be no need for vegans to supplement it. Bottom line is this there are no vegan sources for B12 and vegans must supplement it. Other bottom line is that vegans aren't the only ones that have low Vit B12 levels, it's common among meat eaters and shouldn't be used by them to tout the superiority of their diet.

if we made it ourselves there would be no need for vegans to supplement it. Bottom line is this there are no vegan sources for B12 and vegans must supplement it. Other bottom line is that vegans aren't the only ones that have low Vit B12 levels, it's common among meat eaters and shouldn't be used by them to tout the superiority of their diet.